Harry Lewis obit

Harry Lewis, Actor and Hamburger Hamlet Founder, Dies at 93

He was not on the list.

Harry Lewis, who started as an actor in films such as “Key Largo” and went on to found the Hamburger Hamlet and Kate Mantilini restaurants with his wife Marilyn, died of natural causes Sunday in Beverly Hills. He was 93.

Born in Hollywood, he started acting in the Air Force during WWII and was signed to Warner Bros. when he left the military. He met his future wife Marilyn when she came to see him several nights in a row at the Pasadena Playhouse. In “Key Largo,” he played Edward “Toots” bass, a member of Edward G. Robinson’s gang.

His numerous small film roles included “Gun Crazy” and “Blonde Dynamite” as well as guest appearances on “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” and “Adventures of Superman.”

The Lewises opened the first Hamburger Hamlet on the Sunset Strip in 1950, with Harry cooking and Marilyn waiting tables, then opened a second Hamlet the same day son Adam was born in 1955. With locations including Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Hollywood Blvd. and Palm Springs, the restaurant was a hit with industry figures including Sammy Davis Jr., Ronald Reagan, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Al Pacino.

The chain expanded to 24 locations before the Lewises sold them in 1987 for $33 million. The couple continued to run Kate Mantilini until 2009, when sons David and Adam took over the restaurant’s operations.

Adam Lewis said his father had a “relentless drive that never extinguished.”

Harry Lewis is survived by his wife Marilyn, sons David and Adam and five grandchildren.

Filmography

Year       Title       Role       Notes

1941      Dive Bomber      Flag Man              Uncredited

1941      International Squadron Pilot       Uncredited

1941      One Foot in Heaven        Young Soldier in Hospital              Uncredited

1941      They Died with Their Boots On   Youth    Uncredited

1941      The Body Disappears      Elevator Operator            Uncredited

1941      You're in the Army Now                Recruit Uncredited

1942      Captains of the Clouds   Mr. Burton - RCAF Applicant        Uncredited

1942      Always in My Heart         Steve    

1942      Secret Enemies Radio Operator Uncredited

1942      Busses Roar        Danny  

1942      Desperate Journey          Evans    Uncredited

1943      The Hard Way    Serious Young Man          Uncredited

1943      Air Force              Minor Role          Uncredited

1944      The Last Ride      Harry Bronson  

1944      Winged Victory Cadet Peter Clark            

1946      Her Kind of Man               Candy   

1947      The Unsuspected             Max      

1947      Always Together               Reporter              Uncredited

1948      Winter Meeting                Juvenile                Uncredited

1948      Wallflower          Arthur   Uncredited

1948      Key Largo             Edward 'Toots' Bass        

1948      Adventures of Don Juan                Innkeeper's Son                Uncredited

1948      The Decision of Christopher Blake             Juvenile in Play Uncredited

1948      Whiplash             Press Man           Uncredited

1949      Joe Palooka in the Counterpunch              Chick Bennett   

1949      Bomba on Panther Island              Robert Maitland              

1950      Gun Crazy            Deputy Clyde Boston     

1950      Blonde Dynamite              Champ Fallon    

1950      My Friend Irma Goes West           Trooper                Uncredited

1950      Southside 1-1000             FBI Agent             Uncredited

1951      The Fat Man       Happy Stevens

1953      Run for the Hills                Mr. Carewe       

1953      Vice Squad          Arresting Detective         Uncredited

1956      The Harder They Fall       New York Ring Announcer            Uncredited

1956      The Ten Commandments             Slave      Uncredited

1956      Accused of Murder          Bartender            Uncredited

1956      The Man Is Armed           Cole      

1959      I Mobster            Gangster              Uncredited

1969      Pendulum           Brooks Elliot      

1978      Invisible Strangler            Stage Manager